Happy Birthday, Damon
by Vampgirl994
Summary: It's Damon's birthday and he's not too happy about it. Stefan organises something for him and when Damon sees it he's not in the best of moods. Elena gets angry and goes to speak to Damon. Will she find out the reason why he hates his birthday and stefan?


**Happy Birthday, Damon**

**Summary:**** Damon has never been one for celebrating birthdays, especially his own. So for once, Stefan decides to do something special for him; but Damon, as always, isn't in the right mood. What will happen when Elena gets angry and goes to talk to Damon? Will she find the reason as to why Damon hates his birthday...and Stefan so much?**

**A/N:**** Just to let you guys know, I have based this story on the books and the TV series of Vampire Diaries. (BTW, Ian Somerhalder is so, so hot! He is THE perfect Damon Salvatore! Because of him, I am Team Damon! I can't imagine any other person as Damon, he's that perfect! I love you, Ian! ****)**

**Elena's POV**

Elena pulled up outside the boarding house with a bright smile. She was going to see Stefan again, which in her book, was definitely something to smile about. As soon as she got out of the car, she couldn't help but feel confused. She could see Stefan's car in the driveway, but...not Damon's car. Stefan had said over the phone that today was a special day for Damon; he never told her what it was, only just that it was a special day. Elena stopped looking at the empty car space and ran towards the boarding house door with great excitement. She took an excited breath before she pressed the door-bell. After a few short seconds, the grand door opened to reveal the beautiful Adonis, with emerald eyes and a dazzling smile, who stood before her.

"Hey" Stefan smiled brightly.

"Hi Stefan" Elena said, returning the smile. "May I come in?"

"Of course" Stefan then moved aside to greet Elena inside the house. Elena smiled and walked inside the house.

"Thank you" She said appreciatively looking around the house. It didn't really matter how many times she entered the house...she would never get used to it. Stefan stood beside her and let his hand slip into hers, Elena smiled blushingly. Once they had both entered the magnificent living room, Elena let go of Stefan's hand and managed to stop dead in her tracks.

"What are all the decorations for?" Elena asked, completely confused. She began to look around with a critic's eye. There were birthday banners all over the living room, with balloons and grand tables covered in cloth, and topped off with various looking foods that she hadn't even seen before. Then there was the punch bowl; the substance in the bowl... it didn't look like punch, not by a long mile; it was a dark crimson liquid and Elena couldn't help but feel woozy looking at it.

"I'm sorry about the bowl" Stefan said sympathetically; he must have guessed Elena's discomfort. Elena swallowed hard before talking again.

"Is this all for...Damon? I remember you saying that it was a special day for him..."

"Yes, it is for Damon; I decided to organise it for him"

"But...why? You and him don't get on...I'd even go as far to say that you're enemies" Elena said looking around and tapping the balloons, completely intrigued by them.

"I understand that he and I don't get on, I would also go as far to say that we are enemies; but still, he's my brother"

"And this is some scheme to...make him appreciate you more?" Elena said with a cheeky smile.

"Not to _appreciate_ me...just to, _like me_ a little better; it can't hurt to try" Stefan said with a slight grim tone; he was now holding Elena in a soft embrace, which to her seemed unbreakable.

"I'm sure he already does appreciate you" Elena said supportively, wrapping her arms around his waist.

"Well, I hope so; a lot of planning has gone into this" Stefan said looking around, like an artist looking at their finished piece of work.

"I'm sure he'll love it, no matter what" Elena said, now resting her head gently on Stefan's chest.

"I don't know" He sighed doubtfully; he paused before he finally spoke again. "Damon isn't the type of person to be bothered about birthdays, especially when it comes to his own"

"Did something happen for him not to bother? I mean, there has to be a reason" Stefan remained silent after she said this; knowing this, it only confirmed Elena's thoughts. Something must have happened to Damon for him to not bother about his birthday; either that or he just simply wasn't bothered, like most people Elena knew. Then she looked at Stefan in confusion, he seemed like he was on high alert...like there was intruder coming towards the house.

"What? What is it, Stefan?" Elena said now completely focused on Stefan's face.

"It's Damon; he's just pulled up in the driveway"

"What should we do now?" Elena could now feel a certain excitement rush through her. Now, it felt like a game; a bit like hide-and-seek, but Elena could sense that Stefan wasn't in the excited, hyped-up mood that she was feeling at that moment.

"Should we surprise him? Try hiding in the corner or something?" Elena asked excitedly; she really seemed to enjoy this now.

"There'd be no point, he'd smell us out" Stefan whispered, whilst at a safe enough distance by the door, waiting for it to open. Then the door knob on the door began to jiggle about and Elena felt nothing more than excitement and adrenaline rush through her now. Stefan had put a lot of effort into pleasing his brother for his birthday; Damon had to at least appreciate it. If he actually_ liked_ it, that would be considered a bonus. Elena smiled as the door gradually began to open...

...And in stepped Damon.

He was in the exact same way as Elena saw him last time; sunglasses, messed-up hair, black jacket, black shirt, black trousers...everything was as black as usual. Yep, he was exactly in the same way as Elena had seen him last...except...he had no smile; it was nothing strange to her, Damon practically never smiled...only on the rare occasion when he said something funny to make himself smile - or something he said, which he _thought_ was funny – but mostly, he did when he knew Elena was around...but...no smile today; no smile whatsoever. He mustn't have really been in the mood.

"Hello Damon" Stefan said grimly.

"Hello Stefan, Why is it that you always seem...depressed, when you say hi to me?" Damon said smiling. Oh look, there it was...'the Damon smile' as Elena liked to call it.

"You promised me an eternity of misery; what do you expect me to be like?" Damon smiled brightly at this, and took off his jacket.

"I don't expect anything better..." Damon began smiling but then stopped abruptly. "Stefan, you didn't tell me that we had a visitor today" Then Damon turned his head to face Elena; he smiled, but it wasn't just any smile, it was the one he had designed especially for her, whenever they would see each other. Elena imagined that Damon would have called it his _'Elena smile'_. Elena could feel her heart_ melt_ at the sight of this, but she tried not to show it; instead, she shook her head lightly.

"Um... happy birthday, Damon" Elena said simply. Damon froze for a second, but regained his composure before speaking again.

"...Thank you, Elena; wow, first time anyone's taken any notice of me" Damon smiled at Stefan.

"We have a... surprise for...you" Elena said with a small smile.

"A surprise? For me?" He smiled cheekily. A surprise, yes; but not in the way you're expecting, Elena thought to herself.

"Yes, a surprise; it's in the living room"

Unlike what Elena had expected, Damon wasn't showing any anticipation at all; in fact, he seemed quite bored with the idea. And yet, he still managed to walk towards the living room, right past Elena. Maybe he just decided to look because he knew he'd have to walk by me, Elena thought to herself. She looked at Damon who was smiling a small smile in her direction. When he entered the living room, Damon stopped dead in his tracks...just like Elena had done, and began looking around. Damon was silent as he looked around and Elena couldn't bear it; she wanted him to burst with excitement and happiness over the fact that his brother actually cared about him. But getting Damon to be happy over anything was like asking an old, bitter, grumpy man to be happy. It was pointless really; but still, Elena couldn't bear the silence and from the look on Stefan's face, neither could he.

"Happy Birthday, Damon" Stefan said in quite a calm but grim tone, whilst putting his arm around Elena's shoulders.

"Do you like it?" Elena asked hopefully. Oh please, please, please like it, Elena pleaded in her mind. Stefan went through a lot to plan this, please, please like it. Damon turned around to face Stefan and Elena; it was impossible for Elena to read his expression. There were slight traces of different emotions wrapped into it, yet Elena still couldn't figure it out. For a moment, it seemed okay; Damon was usually impossible to figure out, so there was really no point of trying. But now was one of those times were Elena had to try and figure him out.

"I think I'm going to go upstairs" Damon said expressionless and emotionless before vanishing up the boarding house stairs. Elena now, couldn't help but feel confused, if a little angry. Stefan had put a lot of effort into this for him; Damon could have at least shown a little consideration if not...a little happiness. But it was like Stefan had said he never really bothered with birthdays, especially when it came to his own. Elena looked at Stefan with complete sympathy; Like Damon, Stefan had an unreadable expression on his face; but Elena didn't need to look at his face to know what he was feeling. She knew exactly what it was and she knew there was something that had to be done about it.

"I'll go and talk to him" Elena said to him gently; Stefan simply shook his head lightly and sighed.

"No...I knew he wouldn't have wanted this, I'd best start putting all of this away" Now Elena felt angry; she could feel the steam rise up through her body; it pulsed through all of her veins. Damon had crossed the line, she wasn't sure what one, but she knew he'd crossed it. She didn't bother explaining to Stefan why she'd suddenly left him, but she knew he'd know later on. She ran up the stairs quietly and hastily and in fact, quite angrily. She was going to give Damon a piece of her mind, so what if he didn't care about his birthday! He'd hurt Stefan's feelings and that was not okay with her. Once she reached the top of the stairs, she stopped dead in her tracks for the second time. There were six, maybe seven, different rooms on this floor and she had no idea which one Damon was in. Elena simply had to go with instinct and go towards the first door that caught her eye. She edged towards carefully, like she was in a horror movie and there was a demon on the opposite side, waiting for her to open the door so it could grab her. But because of the way Elena was feeling right now, even if there was a demon on the opposite side, it would soon realise that it would have picked the wrong girl to mess with. She grabbed the door handle with a tight grip and turned it ever so slightly.

The door opened with great ease and without a single sound; then Elena stepped forward into the unknown. Unlike Stefan's, she'd never been in this room before, like most of the other rooms that were on this floor. Elena began to look around carefully and instinctively for Damon. Oh, he is so going to get it when I find him, Elena thought icily. Then she found what she was looking for; there he was standing by a large chair in front of a roaring fire. The room was dark and sinister; even with Damon standing in front of the glowing fireplace, he seemed to blend in with the ominous atmosphere that hung in the air. But that didn't stop Elena from what she was about to give him.

"What the hell was that for?" Elena shouted quietly, in the hope that Stefan wouldn't come rushing up the stairs. She was now looking at Damon with white-hot flames in her eyes and yet... Damon never stirred, it was like she hadn't even spoken to him, or even entered the room for that matter, but Elena was persistent; Damon could ignore her all he wanted, she certainly wasn't going to give up.

"Why did you do that, Damon?" She asked in a quieter but still angry tone. She somehow knew that Damon wasn't going to speak to her when she talked like she was going to bite his head off. Eventually Damon began to speak.

"Do what?" He asked emotionlessly; this only bubbled Elena's anger to its peak.

"You hurt Stefan's feelings, Damon! He went through a lot to plan that for you and you throw it back in his face!"

"I'm sorry, Elena" He apologized, again emotionlessly. "But, birthdays aren't something I particularly..._enjoy_"

"So what! You hurt Stefan and that's not okay with me!"

"Elena, don't take this the wrong way...but I've been hurting him for years..._way_ before we both even met you...so..."

"Oh, you mean that whole _'misery for an eternity'_ thing? Well guess what? It's coming to an end _now_, Damon! I'm here now and I'm _not_ going to let you hurt Stefan any more than you already have!" Damon turned around and glared at her with his dark, black eyes. Each second he stared at Elena, was like a knife...gently cutting away at her skin; she felt so vulnerable.

"If it hasn't escaped your notice, Miss Gilbert; St. Stefan has hurt me a lot worse than what I ever could or what I plan to..."

"You're not planning anything, Damon; not whilst I'm here. And how could Stefan...?" Elena began to ask before Damon suddenly interrupted her.

"Well that's the million dollar question, isn't it? How could a saint like Stefan ever hurt a person like me, Damon Salvatore? Well, I'll tell you one thing, my princess; he did, and I intend to get him back" Damon looked at her with one of his _'really serious'_ looks; if he looked at you like that, you knew he meant business, there were no two ways about it. Damon was a man of seriousness when it came to keeping his word, and he was one of those who really kept to his word, if at all costs.

"I'm not your _princess_, Damon" Elena responded icily, but Damon smiled; not just any smile, but his _'Elena smile'_. It was a unique smile that said _'you will be mine; one day...I can guarantee it' _Elena knew that Damon was a serious man when it came to his word; that he knew his word would be kept at all costs, but becoming his _'princess' _was something that was _never _going to happen, no matter how much Damon wanted to keep his word from being unfulfilled. Elena sighed with frustration.

"Listen...Damon, _please_... just go and apologise to Stefan...that's all I'm asking"

"No" Damon said disobediently; Elena sighed again, now more frustrated than before.

"What does it take with you? Just go and apologize!"

"Do you want me to tell you how St Stefan hurt me?" Damon said seriously, with a slight tone of sadness.

"I don't care! Just go and apologi-..." Elena began, but Damon interrupted her again.

"Do you know about Katherine?" Elena gulped nervously; of course she knew about Katherine. She was the first thing Elena and Stefan had talked about as a couple and it wasn't on such glowing terms either. But she knew Damon was serious about this, so she simply nodded and edged towards him nervously.

"It happened back in 1864..." Damon began.

- - - - _Flashback_- - - - - -

_Damon kissed Katherine with such passion; he loved her more than his own life, he was even willing to give it up for her...which is what he intended to do. Katherine had a secret, which only a certain few –from what he know of- knew about. Katherine was something of the unthinkable...she was a vampire. Damon couldn't love her more because of this, he wanted an eternity with her; he wanted forever._

"_I Love you, Katherine" He said gently, stroking Katherine's beautiful golden hair. Katherine giggled and smiled in response._

"_Do you love me?" He smiled; Katherine gave him a pondering look and giggled._

"_You're here with me, aren't you?" She smiled, raising her right brow._

"_I know...but my brother..." Damon began doubtfully before Katherine interrupted him._

"_Isn't here" She giggled. "I don't want him to play our little game" She mischievously stroked Damon's chin lightly with her index finger. At that point, Damon couldn't help himself...he had to have Katherine. He pulled Katherine's face gently towards his, finally binding them together again. Each and every touch from her sent tiny shocks that rushed through his body; he accepted and embraced each spark, he didn't want this to end. Then Katherine pulled away from him unexpectedly; there was a knock at the door, Damon groaned internally; why did this have to end? He asked himself. Katherine giggled a little after looking at the door._

"_Sorry, playtime's over; I have to go" She smiled sadly. But Damon didn't want to let her go; no, he knew where she'd go next...which made him want her all the more to himself._

"_I don't want playtime to be over" He whined childishly with a small smile; he stroked her hair again to see if she'd get the hint._

"_Don't worry" Katherine smiled reassuringly; she then lowered her head gently, just beside Damon's right ear and then slowly... and gently began to whisper._

"_I'll be back for your birthday surprise" She then raised her head before giving Damon a final kiss and then leaving him... feeling alone... thinking about what could have been if Katherine had decided to stay._

_-End of Flash Back-_

"I get it, Damon; you loved her...but...what's it got to do with Stefan and the fact that you _still haven't apologized to him yet" _Elena glared.

"Oh it has _everything_ to do with him...I just haven't got to the _juicy_ part yet, which you may find interesting"

"Well hurry up, you still have yet to apologize" Elena was now really starting to get impatient.

"All in good time, princess" he smiled smugly.

"I'm not your princess" Elena murmured under her breath.

"Anyway, after Katherine left, I was left alone in my room..."

_- - - - - - -Flashback - - - - - - _

_Damon was sitting on his bed, feeling frustrated, angry and more importantly...alone. Katherine had been gone longer than he had expected and now he was getting anxious. He even began asking himself the most barbaric of questions that he somehow knew the answer to. Was she with Stefan? Both his mind and heart were telling him so, and yet he afraid to do something about it. Katherine was his everything, he didn't want her in Stefan's arms, he wanted her in his...and yet, it was what Katherine has wanted; to be with both Salvatore brothers...as her playthings in some ways. But his love for her overpowered all of that; it seemed stronger than other force in the world, he didn't care about what she did or had ever done with Stefan...just as long he, Damon, was with her. Damon frowned when he heard a woman screaming outside; probably another vampire my father and his associates had captured, Damon thought._

_- - - - - -End of Flashback- - - - - - _

"Your father knew there were vampires in Fell's Church?" Elena interrupted him suddenly.

"Sadly...yes, and most of his acquaintances too" Damon said grimly.

"What would they... do to them if they... caught them?" Elena somehow regretted to ask.

"Burn them" Damon said angrily looking into the fire.

- - - - - - _-Flashback_ - - - - - - - - -

_Stefan had burst through Damon's door panicky, trying to catch his breath. Damon rose up from his bed when he saw his brother, but mostly because he saw the bite marks on his neck. I can see Katherine's been to see you, Damon told him internally. But there was something about Stefan at that moment, that started to panic and frighten Damon and he was too scared to find out what._

"_Katherine" Stefan said breathlessly; Damon's eyes widened in shock._

"_What? What about her?" He asked worriedly._

"_They've taken her...Father's taken her...He knows, Damon" Stefan said, again breathlessly._

"_How...How could he have known? Where are they taking her?"_

"_Down by the bridge, where they take them all"_

_- - - - - - - - - End of Flashback - - - - - - - - _

"I tried to save her...we both did...but it wasn't enough" Damon said as if he was about to burst into tears.

"That woman screaming...that...that was _her_?" Elena asked nervously; Damon simply nodded, continuing to stare at the fire, completely lost in its dancing flames. Elena gazed at him with sadness; she'd never seen a man like this, let alone _Damon Salvatore_. He was the person who wasn't afraid of anything, but when a subject as sensitive as Katherine came up...he couldn't have been more vulnerable and fragile. This was a whole new side to Damon that Elena has always wanted to see, but could only hope to imagine; now that she'd seen it, she deeply wished that she could have the other side back.

"How could your father have known, if he hadn't already?"

"_St. Stefan_ was with him...he trying to convince my father that vampires probably weren't all that bad and whilst he was there...my father gave him vervain in a drink; then, when Katherine was with him..." Damon had finally stopped.

Now Elena finally understood everything; why he hated his birthday so much...and more to the point...Stefan. Damon's birthday was just a dark reminder of what happened all those years ago; he loved Katherine, and she was taken away from him so suddenly, Elena couldn't even begin to think of the pain that she would feel if she'd lost Stefan; it was all too much. All this time, Damon seemed to strong-willed and invincible...but if you looked underneath all of that...all you'd see is a frightened, fragile, vulnerable man, who'd lost his love. Elena could understand all of that...but what she couldn't understand, though she tried, was how Damon hated Stefan for what he did. Stefan was only trying to do the right thing, he was trying to save Katherine and the other, perhaps peaceful vampires that were just trying to make a living in the human world, it was just that their father was many steps ahead and it was somehow unfortunate that Katherine was caught in the making. Elena placed her hand gently on Damon's shoulder; he didn't stir.

"Listen...I know you're hurt because of what happened to you and Katherine, I understand that; but, Stefan is doing his best to make reparations for it; why do you think he did all of that for you?"

"If he wants to make reparations, then he can start by giving me Katherine back" He snarled icily.

"Nobody can bring back the dead, Damon; it's a part of life, once they're gone... they're gone"

"You really know how to cheer up a person on their birthday, don't you?" Damon said sarcastically.

"I still want you to apologize to Stefan"

"For what? Ruining my life?"

"You're the only one that's doing that right now, Damon; you keep on letting yourself get hurt because of Katherine and you're too busy to notice that there is still one person who is alive, that cares about you, and is willing to say sorry for what they've done. You got a second chance at life as a vampire, Damon; _Live it_, don't waste it by feeling sorry for yourself and deciding to inflict the same pain that you feel onto the people that really care about you"

Damon sighed gently; she could tell that somehow, what she'd said, most of it had gotten through to him...she just wasn't sure what parts.

"I'm sorry for what happened to you" Elena said gently.

"That's what they all say..." He said firmly.

"But not everyone knows about what happened or how you feel...Damon, if I could take the pain away...you know I would" She whispered.

Then right at that moment, she placed her hand that was before on Damon's shoulder, and now onto his cheek; each finger forming to his distinct, yet handsome, features. What Elena had said was true to every extent; she did wish that she could take away all of Damon's pain. She'd imagined countless times what would have happened if Damon hadn't been hurt so much and Katherine was still on the earth, well, let's face it; Stefan and Damon wouldn't be here, they'd still be vampires, but they wouldn't be here right now with Elena. In a way, she'd have to thank their father for taking Katherine away from Stefan and Damon, otherwise, she wouldn't have them right now and they both were the best thing to happen to her in a long time. But because of that, both Damon and Stefan have been scarred for an eternity and that's something Elena could never cure, no matter how much she tried...

...But she knew there was one thing she could try...

Elena began to stare into his dark eyes deeply before finally plucking up the courage to actually do something she'd never thought she would do, especially to Damon; she kissed him. At first it seemed like a gentle peck on the lips, but it soon evolved into something deeper, something a lot more passionate, more unique; Elena knew Damon would always have his way with the ladies, she just didn't expect him to have his own way with _her_. Elena swore to Damon and to herself that she would never be his, she would always belong to Stefan; but after him telling her about what happened, she knew that she couldn't just always be there for Stefan who decided not to show his pain, which he has inflicted on many others who have come across him. All Damon needed was person to showed interest in him, who was willing to be there for him and make sure that he would be okay; Elena was willing to accept that on all levels. She wasn't going to become Damon's princess, but she sure as heck was going to become his protector; whether he agreed to it or not. Now Elena had only one more thing to say to him as she pulled away from him gently...

"Happy Birthday, Damon" She said with a smile.

**THE END!**

**A/N:**** I well and truly hope you've enjoyed this story as much as I've loved writing it. Over recent months, I have become a HUGE fan of the Vampire Diaries, whether it'd be the books I've read a thousand times or the amazing TV series, which I can't seem to get enough of. As a fan, I have grown deeply in love with the characters but mostly the pair that is Damon and Elena; I absolutely adore their chemistry both in the books and on screen, and I'm very sure that most of you would agree. This one-shot was just a little taster of the stories I plan to create for the Vampire Diaries. BTW, my story 'When Swan met Salvatore" is still a work in progress, I should be able to show the first chapter in a few weeks if not sooner, I'll just have to see what happens **** I Love you guys! xxx**


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